AI-Driven 3D Printing Firm Inkbit Moves into 38,000 Sq Ft Facility

MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) spinout company Inkbit, founded in 2017, uses computer science to enable fast, on-demand 3D printing of multimaterial end-use products. The startup’s unique technology is based on research led by MIT’s Prof. Wojciech Matusik—one of Inkbit’s three co-founders—and intellectual property licensed from the institute. The MultiFab, a vision-assisted 3D printer able to print with ten different materials in the same build, eventually became the company’s commercial Inkbit Vista, which it says is the first 3D printer to be powered by real-time, machine vision-based feedback control. The startup has just announced that it will be moving into a new headquarters in Medford, Massachusetts, in order to expand its ability to create and distribute the innovative Inkbit Vista.

“Inkbit is beginning a new stage of growth and we are enthralled with our new operational space. This new office provides us with the ability to shift our internal focuses to growing our team and supplying customers with the tools necessary to continue our story of innovation,” Davide Marini, CEO and Co-Founder of Inkbit, stated in a press release. “With the new office, Inkbit can continue its mission to be a driving force in the future of additive manufacturing.”

Inkbit Vista

This move to a new, larger workspace comes on the heels of the startup’s recently closed $30M Series B funding round, led by Phoenix Venture Partners LLC and building on Inkbit’s $12 million round of funding in late 2019. The new office, featuring more space and upgraded systems, will help the startup continue the development of its closed-loop feedback Inkbit Vista 3D printing ecosystem, along with growing and managing innovation in order to create more printers. While Inkbit used to reside in a 6,000 square foot property, its new office provides 38,000 square feet of space, which is a big improvement. The new space is located at One Cabot Road, a corporate community owned by The Davis Companies that’s just five miles from Boston’s Financial District.

“We are pleased to welcome Inkbit to our roster of forward-thinking, high growth tenants at One Cabot. Since completing our multi-million repositioning of the property, we have attracted many tech and life science prospects who are drawn to the building’s high-powered infrastructure,” said Duncan Gilkey, Senior Vice President of Asset Management & Director of Leasing at The Davis Companies.

One Cabot Road (Image courtesy of The Davis Companies)

In addition to more space, the new location includes upgraded building amenities provided by One Cabot Road and a 3,370 square foot materials lab with plenty of industrial equipment like tensile testers and fume hoods, which will allow the startup to safely fabricate and test hardware, formulate materials, and test out chemistry. The office also has an 8,100 square foot area with its own power and air lines that’s meant specifically for the Digital Factory, allowing for Inkbit’s customers and partners to take part in dedicated testing and development of materials, hardware, and 3D printed parts.

The Inkbit Vista, which deposits photopolymer resins from piezoelectric inkjet heads, has applications in the medical and military sectors, and with all this extra room for hardware R&D, system assembly, materials research, and more in the new office space, Inkbit’s operational capacity for building its Vision-Controlled Jetting (VCJ) system and supplying it to customers will definitely grow. You can learn more about the Inkbit Vista at the upcoming RAPID + TCT 2021 in Chicago at the company’s booth #E7004. 3DPrint.com will also be attending the event.